Hello Reader,

Two weeks ago today, I drove to Harrisonburg to discuss my professional development goals for the next year with my boss. As usual, I hit the cruise control button, jammed to my summer playlist and admired the foggy mountain views along I-81.

I was excited for a day of meetings with other accomplices to hatch further plans for the ecosystem, and with my colleague Nick to discuss his impending paternity leave.

Three hours later I drove the same route in reverse, crying the whole way home. Yes, the ugly kind. Nick and I had both been laid off due to budget cuts. The radio remained silent.

Without warning, the Ecosystem team had been eliminated from the organization. I was in shock. The summer as I had planned it feel apart - along with my family's health insurance and monthly income.

It's been a difficult two weeks both personally and professionally. As you may have picked up on, I LOVE building and nurturing entrepreneurial ecosystems. Losing the very opportunity to be of service to my community in a paid capacity has been disorienting. Leaving a team that I had a lot of trust in was hurtful on a different level.

One of the first people I called during the days that followed was Julie Heath. She reminded me, in her infinite wisdom, that the only thing worse than going through a difficult time is going through it alone.

Fortunately, I wasn't alone. The very community that I had invested much of my time and care into showed up. Friends took me out for meals and coffee, let me cry on their sofa and even sent flowers from my favorite local flower farm Quince and Burdock.

A week later, I announced my "transition" (decidedly less dramatic than "farewell" which was more accurately how I felt) via email and social media and the messages of support and encouragement kept pouring into my inbox.

I wasn't alone in this and it made all the difference.

Between my ears

Life, most recently: Things I'm excited about, pondering and trying out:

• I finished Frozen River by Ariel Lawhon. The first hundred pages were a little dark and slow but I stuck with it.
• I'm about to finish Weyward by Emilia Hart - great beach read!
• I know what you're wondering: What is this beautiful notebook I spy? Well, while I pursue The Artist's Way (see below), I finally broke out my Grande Journal from Jamie Beck.
• One upside of being without work right now is that I can catch up on my reading. I'm assembling my reading list for the summer.

What is the best book you've read that you keep recommending to others? Is there on that helped you through a difficult time? That allowed you to change your perspective on something? I'd LOVE your recommendation! Simply reply to this email with your favorite, most cherished reading material!

On my desk In progress

Sine I am not actively working right now, there is nothing on my desk. I'm purposefully taking a few weeks to figure out what's next and see what the universe has in store for me.

In issue 80 of this newsletter, I discussed the trouble I had with consistency. What's more: It has grown into a dislike for pulling results out of a hat.

Most things worth pursuing are hard and take time. I love a before-and-after as much as the next person but I find much more intriguing is witnessing the process. The struggle. The doubt.

So instead of surprising you with any projects that I labored on for weeks and months, I want to bring you along, share the progress and the messy middle. Admittedly, it's a lot less sexy, but a lot more real.

The first progress that I'm working through it The Artist's Way. Within our CreativeMornings community, this book (can we even call it that?) has come up again and again. I never felt like I had enough room in my schedule to commit to this 12-week guided course but after lunch with a friend a few days ago, I picked up a copy from Parentheses (one of my favorite local bookshops!).

In week 1, we started Morning Pages (write 3 pages long hand each morning) and the Artist's Date (take yourself on a creative date). There's a long list of exercises and I admit I didn't get them all done but I already learned about my shadow artist and has a mean encounter with some of my creative demons.

Have you done the Artist's Way? What was your experience? I'd love to hear it! Hit reply and share what your journey was like so I don't feel like I'm floundering on my own!

Featured Episode

Know-how via Know-who Soak up some wisdom from Julie Heath - a walking example of know-how via know-who: Listen & subscribe

On my radar

I come across a lot of resources that I want to share with fellow ecosystem builders and changemakers. If we're connected on LinkedIn or Instagram, they might already show up in your feed! In case you missed any, here's my curated list from the last two weeks:

Jobs

• Bark Media is looking for a design lead to join their team in Lawrence, Kansas.
• The W.K. Kellogg Foundation is looking for a program director to manage their international programs.
• Resolution Project is hiring a program manager in New York City.
• Right to Start is hiring a West Coalition Manager in Nevada or New Mexico.
• Forward Cities is looking for an experienced CEO to lead the next chapter of the organization.
• Stellenbosch University in South Africa is seeking applicants for their Postdoctoral Research Fellowship – 2024/2025: Entrepreneurship in the context of extreme poverty and conflict.
• Cambio Labs is looking for an instructor in Brooklyn.
• Johns Hopkins University is hiring a new director for their St. Louis Innovation team.
• The Skoll Foundation is looking for a new Digital Platforms Manager.​

If you're looking for a job with impact, I highly recommend you connect with Servane Mouazan and Julia Firestone on LinkedIn - both of them share more jobs with impact than anyone I know (drop them a little note and say hi, don't make it weird).

If you're in a transition phase in your career, you may benefit from working with Julia Firestone or George Neighbors - both of whom are passionate about helping impact makers live their full potential and find positions that align!

Mark your calendars for 2024:

• June 13-14: Global Entrepreneurship and Innovation Research Conference, Boulder, Colorado
• July 15-18: Global Entrepreneurship Congress GEC+, Puerto Rico
• June 16-18: IEDC's Economic Future Forum​
• October 28-30: SOCAP Global, San Francisco

I will be back in your inbox in two weeks!

In camaraderie,

Anika